Analysis: Bo on the Go

I came in with high hopes! A girl lead. Bo has blue hair and rainbow hair ties.

Her dragon friend is male. There is an old man wizard who has knowledge and helps Bo.

This is another Dora-style show, with the characters calling on viewers to help them solve things.

However, this one is super creepy. Instead of just “say map” or “do you see the thing,” Bo tells viewers that when they move, they increase her energy. So toddlers are now led to believe that they truly have control over what is going on in the television, and they can affect a person’s bodily functions. Am I the only one creeped out here?

This is not a show that is trying to teach STEM, which is a divergence from other Dora-types. There are animals in this show, but none of them do what they would in the real world.

In the episode I watched, the Bluebird of Happiness gets taken by the Snick, who attaches itself to anything that moves. By the end of the episode, we moved through some challenges and saved the bluebird. However, the larger issue was not resolved, or even addressed. How will Bo protect the bluebird from the Snick longterm? It knows where the bluebird lives. What’s more, the entire show is dedicated to movement, and this thing attaches to things that move. No concern?

The central premise is great: for every task, Bo and the viewers have to perform a different physical task. This is a great way to get kids to move as well as enhance coordination and large motor skills.

In general, this is a positive show. I am tired of Dora-style shows, but that is my personal preference. I really dislike the way the show allows toddlers and preschoolers to believe they control Bo’s energy levels. We are trying to teach bodily autonomy and consent from a young age, and this seems like a step backwards in that quest.

I will list this as a show with a positive message for girls (and boys, it is an all around positive, “let’s get moving” message). She is a girl, so we can’t increase the number of female adult leads. And she is the only female character, so we don’t see interactions with other female characters, and the gender ratio of main and weekly supporting characters is 2:1 male, since both her dragon and the wizard are male characters.